Anthropological Concepts Research Articles

At the Limits of Cure. Bharat Jayram Venkat

Bharat Venkat’s excellent new book At the Limits of Cure has two key purposes. One is to query our understanding of the idea of “cure,” what it means to be cured or to be healthy, why this is applied to some diseases and not to others, how we conceptualize incurability, and how these ideas change over time and space. He traces the ways in which pain and cure were experienced and were given meaning in people’s social worlds; explores the different ethical, practical, and therapeutic implications of changing treatments; and shows how medical and social calculations of human worth and value often determined who was deemed “worthy” of cure. In unpacking this, Venkat seeks to disrupt the narrative of progress and completion inherent in the notion of cure, showing the “infinity of ends” associated with chronic disease, as health outcomes vary and cures appear to work for a time and then lose impact. The second goal is to situate these concepts in a historical anthropology of tuberculosis treatment in India across the twentieth century, particularly in the light of increasing resistance to antibiotics. Using a wide range of sources — film, mythology, personal narratives, interviews, colonial and medical records, as well as the built environment of the sanatoria — Venkat demonstrates a repeating pattern of new discovery of cure, whether medical or environmental, followed by wider expansion and then gradual disappointment as each attempt fails to reach its initial promise.

Culture in Social Theory

This article explores the place of an anthropological concept of culture in contemporary social theory more broadly. The concept of culture in Marxist social theory is explored with an emphasis on the questions of determination, social reproduction, and the problem of social action and agency. Drawing on works from cultural Marxists such as Raymond Williams and Stuart Hall, this article argues for a theory of cultural mediation as key to social reproduction over time.

О двух синтезах профессора С.С. Хоружего

Two trends in Russian religious thought – Russian religious philosophy and Or­thodox theology – for a long time developed separately. In their history, they have followed different paths, they have different destinies, significant connec­tions have not been established between them, and their synthesis has not oc­curred. This problem has become the subject of special attention of the Russian philosopher, Professor Sergey S. Horujy. Capturing the philosophical signifi­cance of the hesychast turn in Orthodox theology, Sergey S. Horujy transferred it to philosophy. Having made three turns – hesychast, anthropological and phe­nomenological – Sergey S. Horujy carried out a synthesis in Russian religious thought on the path of reconstruction of hesychast anthropology. And having cre­ated his own anthropological concept – synergistic anthropology, Sergey S. Ho­rujy thus accomplished the synthesis of philosophy and religion at the present stage of their development. S.S. Horujy distinguishes three types of ultimate hu­man manifestations and three ways of unlocking, opening oneself to the Other: ontological, ontic and virtual. Their description forms the basis of synergetic an­thropology. Going beyond anthropology in the established sense of the word, synergetic anthropology, developed by Sergey S. Horujy, goes beyond the scope of philosophy. Arising on the basis of Orthodoxy, this discipline also goes be­yond Christianity and can become the center around which all the disciplines of modern humanitarian knowledge will unite.

Appropriating the civil sphere: the construction of German collective identity by right-wing populist actors during the Covid-19 pandemic

This paper considers the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on right-wing populists’ constructions of German collective identity. In their “Covid-19 crisis” narratives, German populists attempted to rearrange the discursive and institutional space of the German civil sphere through a symbolic inversion of the heroic signifier and legitimization of violence against perceived enemies. To analyze such discursive dynamics, this paper utilizes multilayered narrative analysis, drawing on the synthesis of civil sphere theory, the anthropological conceptualization of the relationship between mimetic crisis and symbolic substitution of violence and the sociological narrative theory of the sacralization and desacralization of heroism. This analysis structures the investigation of positive and negative symbolic constructions of German collective identity by German right-wing populist narratives. The analysis shows that although German right-wing populists are politically peripheral, their affective, antagonistic and anti-elite narratives contribute to the semantic erosion of the liberal democratic core of the German civil sphere. This in turn reduces the ability of democratic institutions to control violence and leads to the restriction of civil solidarity.

Enthusiasts or Fanatics? Some Aspects of Zinoviev’s and Hume’s Anthropological Projects

The logical sociology of Alexander Zinoviev represents the attempt to build a defi nitely scientifi c theory of society where human qualities are practically reduced to minimum and the axiological aspect is entirely excluded. Still, when creating such theory Zinoviev uses a particular anthropological concept and in the long run adds an ethical component. And this does not mean any violation of system logic, but constitutes the result of applying theory to the specifi c history of Russian society of the Communist period. It’s interesting to compare the purely theoretical approach of Zinoviev to the problem of society origin to that of the British philosopher David Hume. Hume, representing the enlightened paradigm, was convinced that not the most moral actions of certain individuals can turn around to the public benefi t in general. While examining Russian communism, Zinoviev follows a similar hypothesis. In doing so Zinoviev adds ethnological aspect to the anthropological one of his sociology: in particular, according to him, Communism in Russia appeared due to the specifi c qualities of Russian people. The theory of super-society, developed by Zinoviev, explains the global situation in the 21st century when two anthropological aspects collide:Russian communist and Western. The Russian project has suffered defeat in this collision and Zinoviev sees here the fault not only of the authorities but of the people as well.

A Free Man in Search of the Truth about Himself. An Attempt at a Moral-Theological Rein-terpretation of Sophocles’ “Oedipus The King”

Sophocles’ “Oedipus the King” is one of the oldest and most famous tragedies that belong to the common patrimony of humanity. It raises issues to which each generation must find its own answer. Some of these issues become particularly relevant at moments when the foundations of common anthropological concepts are shaken, as they are at the present time. The reference to pre-Christian literary works can be a starting point for a dialogue with those who do not share the Christian worldview but are open to an exchange of reflections about man. In this article the author, starting from the specifics of the adaptation of the myth in the Sophocles’ edition, through an outline of the wealth of interpretations of his tragedy through the centuries, arrives at a proposal for the moral-theological reinterpretation of this work in today’s world with the help of two examples: the question of the origin of the person in the context of parenthood and moral responsibility in a world dominated by individualism and a weakened belief in actual human freedom.

Limit-experience as the philosophical and anthropological concept

Limit-experience as the philosophical and anthropological concept

Снятие проблемы совместимости детерменизма со свободой воли

This article is an attempt to question the very correctness of the term free will. The problem of the compatibility of determinism with free will is indicated, which seems to be valuable. Further, it is proposed to clarify the term free will, and not the term determinism, for it is the belief in free will that is being tried to preserve, since it is considered valuable. The author points out that what makes free will valuable is the responsibility for the past and the control of the future. It is assumed that a free person controls the future and is responsible for the past. The question is whether the term free will is not superfluous when we can speak about the freedom of the agent, and whether, in principle, will can have the property of being free. The author argues that freedom is an anthropological concept that is not applicable to will. The article provides evidence that the freedom of a person is not to do as one pleases, but to act precisely on the basis of one's motives, even those that one shares with society as its member, even those that are generated by rational thinking. Three meanings of the term will are considered, namely, will as a proper synonym for freedom with a different connotation, as a complex of motives, and as a function of higher nervous activity. Focusing on the last two, the author compares the power of will in the meaning of the function of the higher nervous activity with such a condition of freedom as the ability to be the source of one's actions. Flexibility of will in the meaning of a complex of motives compares such a condition of freedom as the ability to do otherwise. The author also points out the possible significance of free will as the spontaneity of will and emphasizes its anti-value. He proposes to abandon the use of the term free will and to replace it with the term internal freedom of the agent,and, in relation to will, to apply such descriptions as strength or flexibility, depending on the meaning of the term used: in the meaning of the function of higher nervous activity or in the meaning of a complex of motives. Finally, the author points to the fact that determinism is a condition of the agent's freedom. The author criticizes semi-deterministic concepts as a way to try on responsibility with indeterministic episodes generated by the spontaneity of will. The author considers two semi-deterministic concepts: where the causality gap occurs after the decision is made, but only in a certain percentage of cases the action is carried out, and where the causality gap occurs before the decision is made, but only when the opposite motives are equal. The author, arguing that the spontaneity of will is antivaluable, sees no point in such a reconciliation, and even sees harm, since, in the author's opinion, it is determinism that gives the agent of freedom more freedom, and therefore more responsibility.

Философия человека в Институте философии: 20–80-е годы ХХ века

The article traces the connection between the formation of philosophical anthro­pology as an independent field of knowledge in the 20th century and the synthe­sis of human sciences in the space of interdisciplinarity. The philosophical an­thropology in the USSR is considered at different stages of development from 1920s to 1980s. In the 1920s, the Institute of Scientific Philosophy, headed by G.G. Shpet (1921–1923), supported interdisciplinary projects for the study of human consciousness, the methodology of history, psychology and pedagogy, etc. It’s a person as an acting and understanding subject who became the center of research. For a long time, the philosophical problems of human being did not have their own area of institutionalization at the Institute of Philosophy and were included in other areas of philosophical knowledge: the theory of knowledge, aesthetics, ethics, the history of philosophy, sociocultural research, etc., while being under the pressure of Soviet ideology. The author considers the projects of 1960s and 1970s combined the activity concept of consciousness with psy­chological and pedagogical practices, the idea of a “unified science of man” for­mulated in the 70s. Since the mid 1970s–1980s study of the concepts of Western philosophical anthropology of the 20th century also contributed to the expansion of research problems. The author comes to the conclusion that by the beginning of the 1990s at the Institute of Philosophy the need for substantive independence of human philosophy as a scientific direction in the context of interdisciplinarity was realized.

Междисциплинарный подход в современных исследованиях памяти

The study of memory in philosophy is associated with the search for answers to a wide range of questions that are detailed in different areas of scientific knowledge. In this regard, philosophers turn to the theoretical concepts of sociology, cultural studies, history, psychology, anthropology and other sciences. In Western philosophy, the study of memory has a long tradition based on the principle of rationality. Researchers have developed and continue to develop the terminological apparatus and tools necessary for the study of memory. Despite the accumulated experience of understanding memory, today there are many unresolved problems in Western philosophy, which the author proposes to study in this article within the framework of an interdisciplinary approach in the context of the perception of information disseminated by the media. This is very relevant in the context of globalization and the rapid development of information and communication technologies. The article substantiates that the study of memory in modern Western philosophy needs conceptualization, which is possible only within the framework of an interdisciplinary approach to the study of this phenomenon. The results of philosophers’ research should not be complex and often contradictory concepts, but complementary components of a single built-in system of knowledge about memory, in which there is a place for detailing memory research through the prism of different sciences. In the context of globalization, this will make it possible to exclude media manipulations aimed at replacing conceptual knowledge about memory for the sake of the opportunistic interests of political elites, as well as to take into account the existing advantages of the development of modern communication technologies that make it possible to spread the philosophical conceptualization of memory research in the society.

Эволюция антропологических профилей, риски и сценарии цивилизационного транзита

The article presents the author’s approach to constructing a methodology for fore­casting and evaluating the development of anthropological profiles, human consti­tutions depending on changes in the complex living environment of a person (nature, society, technology, virtual reality). The proposed methodology is based on the concepts of quantum-synergetic anthropology and the author’s method of civilizational umwelt analysis. The processes of transferring human intellectual competencies using AI to various umvelts through a network digital matrix of cy­ber-umvelts, primarily umvelts of technology and virtual reality, are discussed. In the new cyber society, man is already becoming only one of the “intelligent” actors, new forms of hybrid culture and anthropological profiles of generalized physicality are emerging. So, digital painting of neural networks is being sold at expensive auctions, and autonomous intelligent assistants or a unique ChatGPT project are already able to create scientific reviews and even theses of quite satis­factory quality, although not shining with originality. The fundamental question is the prospects for the development of generalized physicality in hybrid systems, from digital drug addiction in virtual worlds of pleasure, to synergistic coopera­tion between humans and AI in scientific creativity. Turning to the near-term per­spective of digital societies, three clusters of their development are identified: the path of China’s social rating, inclusive capitalism of the West, and the project of a harmonious multipolar world. The latter project is just being formed and has a culturocentric nature of the ethics of cooperation, and not a crowd-elitist techno­cratic one. Today, the problem of choosing between the prospects of network di­gital democracy, digital totalitarianism, alarmism, digital religion or the harmo­nization of hybrid digital reality is in full growth.

Особый путь русского человека (на материале философии Н. Бердяева)

The paper discusses the specifics of the path of a Russian person in the anthropological concept of N. Berdyaev in comparison with the Western one. The search for a path in relation to the Western world includes three states: admiration for the Western world, rethinking the values of Western culture and disappointment, building one's own world. Based on the eschatological method, we reveal the typology of the Russian rebellion in relation to the world it created. The peculiarity of the path of a Russian person is clearly revealed in Berdyaev's thesis about the personalist revolution.

АНТРОПОЛОГИЧЕСКИЕ КОНЦЕПЦИИ ЗАПАДНОЙ ХРИСТИАНСКОЙ ФИЛОСОФИИ ХХ ВЕКА

АНТРОПОЛОГИЧЕСКИЕ КОНЦЕПЦИИ ЗАПАДНОЙ ХРИСТИАНСКОЙ ФИЛОСОФИИ ХХ ВЕКА

A Free Man in Search of the Truth about Himself. An Attempt at a Moral-Theological Rein-terpretation of Sophocles’ “Oedipus The King”

Sophocles’ “Oedipus the King” is one of the oldest and most famous tragedies that belong to the common patrimony of humanity. It raises issues to which each generation must find its own answer. Some of these issues become particularly relevant at moments when the foundations of common anthropological concepts are shaken, as they are at the present time. The reference to pre-Christian literary works can be a starting point for a dialogue with those who do not share the Christian worldview but are open to an exchange of reflections about man. In this article the author, starting from the specifics of the adaptation of the myth in the Sophocles’ edition, through an outline of the wealth of interpretations of his tragedy through the centuries, arrives at a proposal for the moral-theological reinterpretation of this work in today’s world with the help of two examples: the question of the origin of the person in the context of parenthood and moral responsibility in a world dominated by individualism and a weakened belief in actual human freedom.

The Marginal Changes of Occupation Pattern, Education, Health and Social Behaviour: An Ethnographic Insight in the Age of Coronavirus Disease-2019

Background The present paper sheds light on the status quo of ethnographic inquiry during the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The ethnographic data include, through the lenses of smartphones, media coverage (TV news, Facebook, YouTube newsChannels), newspapers, and field observations. According to social anthropology, these equipments (smartphones, tablet and Camera) regarded as the ultimate essential technological devices for investigating human behaviour in a pandemic situation. The present study examines who have changed their occupations and how they have willingly accepted a new lifestyle. In addition, the paper illustrates several changes in daily language, changes in the education system and sector, and changes in kinship behaviour and pattern during the pandemic. Objectives The fundamental purpose of the present study is to enlighten on smart ethnography research and its correlation with the concept of visual anthropology. Methodology The current paper does not contain the typical research techniques or methods used in social science. The data was collected from various electronic sources or media. Hence, it may be said that “content analysis” has been used. The “telephonic interview method”, the “observation method”, and several tools for collecting photographs, such as mobiles, phones, and computers, are essential for the present study. The paper is fascinated with secondary and qualitative data. Conclusion Anthropologists pay attention to ascertaining how the people of the new profession and their family members adjust to the present condition of life. Anthropology is interested in searching for how those people who shifted their occupational pattern to another occupation and how they have willingly accepted the new style of life.

Comprehension of Human Existence by Philosophical Anthropology in the Theoretical Space of Modern Historical-Anthropological Concepts

Purpose. The paper seeks to prove the thesis of the significance and importance of the theories and methodological approaches of historical anthropology, which are aimed at understanding the meanings, essence and value systems of human existence in the past for philosophical anthropology. The study of this problem is relevant for understanding the evolution of human identity with philosophical and anthropological concepts, understanding the essence of one’s own existence and attitude to the world. Theoretical basis. The author conducts research in the analysis of the reflexive field of philosophical anthropology and related disciplines, in particular historical anthropology, implemented in the philosophical literature of recent centuries, that is, in the space of non-classical and modern philosophical thought. Originality. I raise and substantiate the theoretical question of the scientific significance of the analysis of human existence in the past thanks to the involvement of theoretical approaches and concepts formed in the reflexive field of modern historical and anthropological research. This forms the prerequisites for understanding complex and interdisciplinary explorations of the essence and cultural and spiritual values of human existence. I analyse the problems of the work in the context of the concept of the incompleteness of the project of philosophical anthropology without its involvement in the theoretical achievements of historical-anthropological investigations. Conclusions. In my opinion, modern historical and anthropological studies of the essence and meanings of being a person of the past form an extensive theoretical system. It is realized through such theoretical aspects of comprehension of human existence by historical and anthropological studies as "history of mentalities", "microhistory", "history of women", "new cultural history", "history of identity", "history of memory", history of mental aspects of political processes. Methodological approaches and concepts of modern historical anthropology form the basis of mental reconstruction and understanding of the mental and cultural causes and factors of human existence, thanks to the analysis of the evolution of the worldview, behaviour, outlook, various forms of individual and social activity of the individual.

Image Analysis in Visual Anthropology Photography: The Biddy’s Photo

Visual anthropology is the study of humans such as through photographs. Although when appreciating how culture is represented visually and when understanding visual concepts, it is not uncommon but rarely used to recognize culture. The primary purpose of this research is to empirically analyse the concept of visual anthropology in culture employing photography as a medium. This study utilises photography as a cultural signal to explore the significance of visual preservation in culture. In addition, this study’s theoretical framework is based on Terry Barrett’s theory of interpreting photographs. Furthermore, this study analyses the photographs from The Biddy’s Photo using a descriptive analysis of photographs as the predominant method of data gathering and utilising the 12 characteristics of a merit image by the Professional Photographers of America, PPA. The outcomes of this research will have a significant influence on the way the public in general perceives the value of cultural photography preservation, visual anthropology, as well as other visual domains relevant to this research, including photography, visual culture, and therefore more. Is it fundamental to comprehend the significance of cultural preservation, particularly when marginalised cultures lack visual representation, as is the situation with certain communities? If predicated on the concept of visual anthropology, photography should be more objective and meaningful in any field of visual and cultural studies.

Curating the Widerstandsaviso: three cases of ethnographic intravention in R&D consortia

ABSTRACT Aligning technological innovation with societal needs is a key concern for knowledge economies. Integrating ethical, legal, and social inquiry into research and development consortia that drive innovation processes has thus become common practice. Ethnographic research in consortia is one such practice. Here, these cover three cases of open ethnographic engagement within R&D consortia in the field of medical and rehabilitation technology. Rather than executing a preconfigured plan, these ethnographic intraventions explored emerging frictions that arose from observant participation within the fast science of dominant workflows in technological R&D. Curating these emerging frictions within the consortia produced what Ludwig Fleck called ‘Widerstandsavisos’, or signals of resistance. Widerstandsavisos disrupt dominant workflows by introducing methodological openness, fostering critical reflection on sampling approaches, placing the focus on actual practices, and engaging in anthropological concept work. The curation of Widerstandsavisos fosters reflexive awareness among members of consortia and opens a space for mutual learning: to produce new knowledge, alter problem framings, and reshape devices. Advancing ongoing discussions on midstream modulation, situated interventions and multimodal anthropology, such ethnographic intraventions present a different means of generating the capacity to address societal needs as well as responsibilities and relevance from within such consortia rather than as strategic interventions from the outside. Intraventions are, however, a risky practice as they produce ethnographic excess that is not easily controlled or directed within the bounds of R&D consortia. This uncertainty is a form of creativity that should be encouraged.

Traditions and innovations in Ukrainian jurisprudence: Ancient Greek roots

Ukraine’s course toward European integration requires harmonisation of Ukrainian legislation with European law, which has its origins in the cultural and traditional foundations of the ancient era. Therefore, the research on the influence of the ancient Greek philosophy of law on the development of Ukrainian jurisprudence becomes relevant, and in the course of this, the problem of the clash of traditions of different legal families and areas of development of legal innovations arises. The purpose of this study – to identify the factor of the dialectic of traditions and innovations in Ukrainian jurisprudence as one of the driving factors of its development. The author uses the methods of axiological analysis, comparative legal method and the method of analogy to substantiate the results obtained and develop conclusions. As a result of the research, it was established that no matter how modified the forms of key legal values, doctrines and institutions are, they are always based on the fundamental ideas based on the intellectual traditions and philosophical and legal ideas of the thinkers of Ancient Greece. It is evidenced by the universalist approach they initiated, on which all European science (including legal science) is based, and modern anthropological concepts of law understanding in general and the justification of fundamental human rights, in particular, are based on principles genetically rooted in the teachings of Protagoras, Socrates and Aristotle. Therewith, it was established that the latest achievements in the organisation of democratic governance are focused on the implementation of the ancient Greek idea of democracy. The author demonstrates that in the dialectical process of development of any legal system, there is always an interaction of some established (traditional) components and various new developments conditioned upon the specifics of such development at each stage, and concludes that the time-influenced changeability of legal values, doctrines and institutions goes back to the intellectual tradition and philosophical and legal ideas of the thinkers of the Ancient period. The practical significance of this research is that the materials of the study can be used: in lawmaking – for the preparation and substantiation of draft laws on the further development of the legal system of Ukraine; in the educational process and research work – in teaching relevant disciplines.

Liminality Affect and Flesh

Liminality is an anthropological concept that has been influential in contemporary social studies. This article is written from an organisation culture and studies perspective wherein liminality has been seen: (i) as something that must be controlled, (ii) as a utopian call to creativity, and (iii) as a dystopian entrapment. Liminality has to do with whether the study of practice has been excessively cognitive whereby the human is reduced to concepts of control, efficiency and profit; and whereby the soma (Gr.) of the physical body is marginalised as mind, spirit, and ideation are prioritised. Thus, what of sarx (Gr.) or the flesh of existence (see Merleau-Ponty, Klossowski)? In this article we explore liminality evaluating its relationship to bodily-ness / bodyless-ness, affect and text. We start with a discussion of liminality as originated by the anthropologists van Gennep and Turner, and as pushed aside by Weick, but lionised as creativity by Kostera, and denounced as stagnation by Szakolczai. This is followed by an auto-ethnographic case study. The case study points to the unheimisch 2 of liminality which we examine via Pierre Klossowski’s manifoldness. Realising that text about liminality and its embodiment easily becomes paradoxical (unembodied and affectless), we present a non-textual (i.e., not written) visual reaction to the case; again, in the spirit of Klossowski; and we conclude with reflections co-inspired by Maurice Merlau-Ponty on the physical affectivity of liminality.